It's Story Time

Summer is almost upon us.  Some rejoice, others not so much.  If you have children at home you might find yourself asking how you can make the most of your time with your children.  I came across this resource from The Village Church in Texas.  It is a great resource and I would encourage parents to check it out and to make the most of your time with your children this summer for the glory of God.  Don’t waste this amazing opportunity you have to instill in your children things that truly matter and will have an impact for eternity.

All credit goes to Village Church and their Children’s Ministry Team.  Below is athe letter from them and a link to the Summer Activity Book.

Blessings,

Doug

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Welcome to summer! For many of you, the next few months will be filled with travel, adventure and increased opportunities to spend time together as a family. As you begin to think about and plan how you will spend the next few months, we’d like to present you with the Summer Family Activity Book. It is a family resource that gives you ideas on how to be intentional with the time you spend together this summer.

There is a charge given in the book of Deuteronomy to continually and intentionally talk with children about what it means to love God with all they are – no matter where they are, no matter what they’re doing:

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you sit up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9

We have put the Summer Family Activity Book together with this charge in mind. Whether you’re hanging out at home, traveling across the country or running errands around town, there is no shortage of opportunities to help your children see the things of the Lord. Our hope is to help you see and take advantage of these moments.

The activities and devotionals in this resource have been divided into four sections to follow the model of Deuteronomy 6:

Set a Rhythm. These are activities your family can do repeatedly and consistently throughout the summer. Some of them will help you put things in place to establish a routine for your family. Others will help you think about ways to be missional – intentionally connecting with people in your community whom you interact with on a consistent basis.

At Home. These are activities that can be easily done as you spend time at home. Many of them include a devotional at the end that will help your kids make a connection between what they have done and a truth from Scripture.

Out and About. This section provides ways to be intentional with outings you take as a family.

On the Way. These are activities that can be done as your family travels – whether you’re moving about by land, air or sea.

We also put together several appendices and an index at the back to make this book even more useful. Enjoy the next few months. We love you and are praying for a summer that draws your family closer together and closer to Jesus.

Blessings,

The Village Church Children’s Ministry Staff

Summer Family Activity Book

God Wants the Whoooole Enchilada, or In This Case Fajita.

Doug Story

Mark 12:30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

One of my favorite places to eat out is Chili’s.  It is a fun environment, people are friendly, they have televisions with sports playing on them, and most importantly they have fajitas.  Yes, fajitas.  I love the fajitas.  They are amazing and I order one almost every single time I go.  They just do fajitas right.  It’s a festival of flavor athat they put on display for you and they make it almost a production as they bring it to your table.  You have your little sealed container for your tortillas, making sure they are nice and warm.  You get a special dish with all your toppings and extras.  The cheese, the guacamole, the pico, the sour cream, the rice all nicely displayed in their own dishes so you can serve it up just how you like it.  Then the meat comes out on a skillet that is so hot they have to give you a nice little mitten for the handle and you can hear the meat, onions, and peppers crackling away as they bring it to your table.  It is culinary perfection at its finest.  The whole package is amazing.

I have never been to Chili’s and ordered a fajita plate and then the waiter just bring out the toppings and tortillas.  Or have them place in front of me this wonderful sizzling hot skillet of just peppers.  What if the they came to my table and said “here is your fajitas, enjoy just the shredded cheese.”  That would be lame and mean.   A fajita is supposed to be the whole thing.  All of it.  No exceptions.  No substitutions.  No withholding.   The order entails them bringing all of it to the table, plain and simple.

How sad it is that Christians do the same thing today.  We withhold parts of our lives from God.  We freely let God have control of this piece of our life, but not that one.  God, you can be in charge of my relationships, but not my finances.  God, I will honor you with my eyes, but not my mouth.  God, I will serve people on Sunday mornings, but I will gossip about people on Friday nights.  I will sing to you in public, but what I do in the privacy of my own home is my business not yours.  We give pieces to God, because the idea of fully surrendering seems a little obtrusive and cumbersome.  It seems like God is asking for a lot.

Jesus was asked a pretty simple question “what’s the greatest commandment?”  His response in Mark 12 was pretty straight forward.  “I want every part of you to love God.”  That’s right the whooooole enchilada, or in this case a fajita.  Jesus said that we need to love God with all our heart.  Every passion and desire we have needs to come from Him, needs to honor Him, and needs to be a representation of love to Him.  Jesus also said we need to love God with all of our soul.   Every fiber of your being, every aspect of your life should love God.   Jesus then said we need to love God with all our mind.  Every thought and idea needs to be about loving God more.  Finally, Jesus said we need to love God with all our strength.  All of our energy, all of our actions, every single movement we make needs to be about loving God.  Are you getting the idea here?  God wants all of you.  He deserves all of you.  He sent His one and only Son to die for all of you, not just a piece of you that you think is most convenient.

Yes I know this is a tall order. But the beauty of this type of order is that when we give our all to God we experience something so much greater.  We experience God in a way where He is our source of hope, our source of happiness, our source of direction, and our source of much more.  In short, He becomes our source of everything.  Just the way it should be.

So don’t miss out on giving to God all that He deserves.

Heavenly Father, Forgive me for withholding the parts of my life in which I have.  Help me to love with you with all my heart, all my soul, all my mind, and all my strength.  Help me live a life that is completely for you.  Amen.

Jeremiah 17:7-8

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.””

The other day I was walking through a store and I saw a large sign that was advertising some plants.  The sign read: “Save the World, Plant a Tree.”  As I walked closer to the sign I could obviously see that it was an advertisement for a sale on plants and trees in the garden section of the store.  I remember stopping in front of the sign chuckling and thinking to myself, “hmmmm, of ALL the crazy stuff happening in our world today, do we really think trees are the answer to all our problems.  I think not.”   I have never heard of shade or branches for that matter saving the world.

As we look at the world, the one thing we can agree on is that it needs saving.  We as a people have messed things up, we have messed our lives up.  I’m sure if you were to do a survey of your friends, neighbors and coworkers you would find that many if not all of them are hurting on some level.  They are going through pain, whether physical, emotions, or relational pain.  In fact all of us on some level whether we like to admit it or not are going through something that is painful and unpleasant.  We are living in a world that is broken and sinful and as a result has effects on us.  YES, even as Christians we will, and in many cases are, in need of saving from the mess we are in.  The good thing is that we have hope.  We have hope and His name is Jesus.

In Jeremiah 17 we find a passage explaining how we can have hope in the midst of difficult days, difficult situations, and difficult people.  We can have hope when our trust and our confidence is in the LORD.  When we are planted in Him and in Him alone.  When Jesus is our source of strength, hope, and guidance our life is like a tree that is planted by a stream whose roots our nourished by the refreshing water of the LORD.  In order to experience this refreshing water of the LORD, we must first trust and have confidence in HIM and HIM alone.  We don’t trust ourselves to get us through.  We don’t trust the latest celebrity guru who gives nice advice.  We trust the LORD.

By trusting in the LORD we have the benefit of two marvelous and wonderful things according to this passage:

• First, we don’t worry because God is in control and He is our source of strength.  We depend on Him and His sovereignty to see us through the lowest and most fearful moments in our life.  Trusting in God should be easier than we make it.  All we have to do is look at Jesus and how much God loved us in sending Him to die for us and our response should be trust and have confidence in knowing God is in control of every situation.

• Secondly we see fruit in our lives.  Basically, by trusting in God and trusting in Him for our strength and for our survival in all things our life will produce fruit.  The way we live, the decisions we make, the relationships we have, and the conversations we speak will begin to resemble that whom we are depending and trusting and following. Make sure that is Jesus.  Anything that is produced by us should resemble Him.  That is why it is so important to be rooted in God and His word.

I am not naïve or stupid enough to say that trees will save the world.  However, if we start acting like trees and rooting our selves in God and His Word maybe, just maybe, we will start to produce fruit.  Fruit that looks like Jesus.  Then and only then will things begin to change.

Trees are sometimes pretty, but only Jesus can save the world!

Heavenly Father help us to be rooted in you and your Word.  Produce in us the fruit that will make a lasting impact in the world.  Fruit that bears the resemblance of Jesus. Amen

Romans 8:15 “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”

“DADDY!”  I  heard it come from the other room.  It felt like I got to the other side of our house where the scream originated from in about one second flat.  I enter the room to a crying four year old who tells me he is scared… of the dark.  Instantly l turn in to super dad and replace the light bulb which had burned out in his night light that was in his room.  Problem was solved.  Fear was conquered.  “Dad of the Year” award was all but a guarantee.

I wish we could all conquer fears like we do with our small children.  Afraid of the dark, we plug in a night light.  Usually when it comes to the fears of a child it doesn’t take much to conquer them.  Not so for adults.  Our fears are different.  Our fears seem much bigger, more serious and at times all that we seem to focus on.

Sometimes we are in fear of uncertainties.  Fear of the future that seems unclear.  Fear of dying.  Fear of being sick.  Fear of losing someone close.  Fear of being made fun of.  Fear of doing the right thing and being seen as some “freak” for standing up for what is right.  Fear of failing.  Fear of losing a job.  Fear of never finding a job.  Fear is not just something we face in our lives, but also something that can have a real impact on us.

Fear can be very troublesome.  It can cause us to do things that if under normal circumstances we would not ever do.   Fear can cause us to doubt God and His plan for us.  Fear can cause us to give up because the circumstances or situation seem unwinnable or too difficult.  Fear can cause us to want to take over control of a situation instead of allowing God to work through His plan.  Fear can cause us to think we need to lie to cover things up because the consequences or pending results seem unbearable.  Fear messes our lives up.

Believe it or not the Bible talks a lot about living in fear and how it is not necessary.  You see for believers we have something on our side that conquers all fears known to man.  His name is JESUS.  In Romans chapter 8 verse 15 Paul writes: “For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.””  Because of Jesus we have a relationship with the all mighty, all powerful, wonderful God.  Because of Jesus we have someone who intercedes on our behalf to God.  Because of Jesus we can have a new life, one where we are not known by our sins and failures, but instead by the victories and power of Christ our Lord.  I love how Paul reminds us that because of Jesus that God, our Daddy, our Abba Father is right there for us in our time of need when we are paralyzed by our greatest fears.  Our fears do not frighten Him.  Our fears do not keep God up at night.  God is not biting his fingernails wondering how this situation is going to pan out.  He is God and he has conquered it all.  John 16:33 reminds us “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” God conquered the world and true peace is only found IN his Son Jesus Christ.  We are His sons and daughters and He is there for us in our times of need.

So if you find yourself in fear, take heart that God, your father has conquered them all.  And He is intimately aware of the fears you feel, but He himself is not afraid at all.  He is standing in full confidence and assurance that these fears will not defeat you.  All you have to do is stand behind Him, let God lead you through the trials and fears in life that we were never meant to face alone and that He has already conquered.

Some fears need night lights, for all others, depend on God to get you through.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for the gift of your Son and that through Him we can live in peace without fear.  Give us your strength to look at the fears we have in our lives and see them as they truly are.  Help us see them as things that you have already conquered and not as things that will destroy us. Amen.

Matthew 8:19-22

19 Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” 21 Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”

When you have to be somewhere at a specific time and that particular specific time is fast approaching things get stressful.  Trying to get kids ready, diaper bags packed, shoes on, cell phones in pocket, hair combed, shoes back on… again.  All this hustle and bustle can be stressful.  In all the hustle and bustle the question was asked “can I bring a toy?”  While looking for all the things that need to be in the car so that the car can eventually leave with us in it, I shout “sure, pick your favorite one.”  At first you would think this question and answer exchange was quite simple and to the point.  However, to a 3 year old, this question had massive implications.  First comes the discussion of what toy is his favorite.  Then the tears that we can only bring one.  Then the reprioritizing of what really is the favorite.  Then the clarification of his favorite inside toy vs. his favorite outside toy.  Reality is that picking a number one is hard sometimes.

When it comes to Jesus the discussion and agonizing that comes over making such choice should be much more simple.  But is it?  I mean it is easy on Sunday mornings to say that Jesus is number one in your life.  Your sitting in church.  You just got done participating in some awesome worship through music.  Your pastor is on his “A” game and the message rocks!  You just find yourself shouting inside, “JESUS, YOU ARE NUMBER ONE!”  That is easy.  That is expected.  How about when you are stressed? How about when you are tired, pressed to the max, persecuted, misunderstood, angry, hurt?  Is Jesus number one when life seems to be getting the best of you?  What about when you hear horrible news?  When you don’t know how your going to get through the mess you are in?  Is He still at the top?

Jesus discovered this first hand when people claimed they wanted to follow Him.  People would approach Him and tell Him that they were willing to follow Him, but were they really understanding what they were saying.  In Matthew 8:19-22 we see two responses Jesus gives to individuals who said they were ready to follow Him.  On a first read, it might seem that Jesus is being totally rude or mean to these two men wanting to become His followers.  But a little investigation makes us realize nothing is further from the truth.  Many of us read verse 22 and think that Jesus was being a little too harsh and expecting a little too much.  I mean come on, who shouldn’t be able to bury a parent after their death?  In fact, many scholars believe that this man was not asking to go to a funeral, instead he was asking to follow Jesus after his father eventually did die.  Kind of like saying to Jesus, “Hey now is not a good time, but maybe in a few years.”  He wanted to set the terms as to what following Jesus would look like in his life.

You see, both these men wanted the same thing:  To be disciples of Jesus.  Jesus just wanted to make sure they understood what that meant:  He had to be number one in their lives.  He had to be more important than possessions, more important than family.  It’s not that those other things are unimportant, they just can’t be placed anywhere near in value to Jesus.  Our life, our finances, our relationships, our conversations, everything we are should be centered around the fact that Jesus is the most important relationship in our lives.  No discussion.  No agonizing what is your favorite.  Just obedience to the only ONE thing that should hold top value in your life

Is Jesus truly number one in your life?  Is He more important than anything you have or own?  More important than any of your relationships?  He doesn’t want to be number two….He wants to be number one.  Is He number one in your life?

Heavenly Father, help my life reflect you most.  Help live the life that proclaims you are number one in my life.  Break me and mold me to live for you alone.

Hey Everybody,

Wanted to check in with you today.  It has been a looooong week since the procedure and surgery, but we are very pleased with the outcome and the prognosis from the doctors.  There are still a few more steps to be taken, but as for this first step we are very pleased with how it went.

Everything with the procedures, as far as we know, went very well.   Wednesday when they removed the cancer from the face and lip was a loooooong day.  I ended up being in the clinic for just under 12 hours and had a total of 6 removal procedures done.   There were some long and difficult moments that day.  It was disheartening to have them keep coming back in the room and tell us they had to go deeper and take more tissue.  It really was the most difficult day I have ever been through.  I was physically, emotionally and spiritually drained.  I knew God had a plan and was going to bring glory to His name through this, but it was a challenge for me to keep my hope in Him in the midst of doctors peeling away at my face layer by layer.  It was just a long journey, but through the procedures I can truly say that all the prayers helped.  Knowing there were so many people praying along with me and my family was very much appreciated.  Every time they came back into the room to start another procedure, I would put my headphones on and start listening to my music and pray.  The prayers definitely worked. Finally, the Doctor came in and was able to say that as far as all the tissue he removed from the lip and face, that there was NO more cancer in it.  He had the margins he was looking for.  The cancer had been cleared away.  (insert loud cheers here).     Wednesday night after the procedure I ended up getting admitted to the hospital until my plastic surgery appointment on Friday.   The clinic was not really prepared for my procedure to take that long and remove that much tissue so they decided to have me go to the ER and get admitted through there.  It was a long process but I finally got into a room about 11 pm that night.

The next two days I just waited for my plastic surgery appointment.  I was on a lot of morphine for pain but Thursday morning finally came and that was when I met my plastic surgeon for the first time after my removal procedure from the day before. My plastic surgeon came in and let me know that I did loose a lot of tissue, but because of what muscles and tissue he could spare I was going to be able to have a completely different procedure.  This was the first time that he said I was going to be able to have a skin graft.  Prior to the procedure last week we thought the procedure was going to impair my ability to speak and eat permanently, but with this new procedure my speech and eating function would not be affected so drastically.  This was a relief.  The surgeon said the procedure would be long and difficult, but the outcome was going to be a lot better than he originally thought.

( insert loud cheer again )

Friday and the plastic surgery came and went.  When I came out of the surgery I was very tired and I had a large bandage sutured to my face and over my mouth in order for the tissue to heal.  I had to be on a liquid diet for a week.  The week was filled with lots of great movies at home ( thanks to all the guys who let me borrow DVDs ), lots of meds, lots of ice packs and lots of sleep.

After seven days I returned to the plastic surgeon and he cut out the sutures and took the bandage off.  He asked me to say a bunch of words and everyone in the room was very pleased with what they saw and heard.

As far as step ONE is concerned we are very excited for how well things went.

We know there are still some things that need to be confirmed and tested.  We have some follow up appointments with a few doctors to discuss some options for making sure there is no more cancer in the body.  The type of surgery that was done ensures that there was no more cancer in the specific area that was removed.  And since the beginning we have known that the pathology report for my particular cancer came back “uncontained” which means there are a few more things we need to do to ensure that all cancer is gone everywhere in the body if on the off-chance some remains.  We will be having those appointments in the next couple of weeks.

God is continuing to show that HE is in charge and is taking care of things. In this whole process we have seen God continue to provide, continue to control, and continue to comfort in all situations.  We are grateful that we are part of His plan and that through this He has shown himself to be so faithful.

As we continue on to the next couple of steps to ensure this thing is completely behind us we know that God is going to continue to be faithful.  He is going to continue to be in control and to orchestrate His will in my life.  Continue to pray.  God gave us victory over step one, now as we continue on lets continue to pray for more victories in His name.

A sincere THANK YOU from me and my family as many of you have expressed your support and prayers through this whole thing.  Knowing that there were so many people praying for me, the doctors, and for healing has brought such a sense of peace.  I am humbled by the response and the outpouring of love and care I have received.  Keep the notes coming,  keep the encouragement coming, keep the prayers coming

Thanks and much love

Doug

Here are some new things that you can be praying for:

For the skin graft to take.

For all the tissue to heal.

Patience in waiting for the tissue to heal.

Grace as we work through the slight adjustments to speech and eating.

Wisdom for the doctors as they consider options for the next steps.

That NO cancer cells had left the lip and mouth area and it is in fact gone.

God is constantly preparing us to better understand Him and His plans for our life. Constantly showing us how good He is.  Constantly walking along side us through life as we live in a way that glorifies Him.    I know this to be true.   For years I have been a leader in ministry and I have stood in front of people and proclaimed both the goodness of God and the sovereignty of His plans.   For years I have been witness to the amazing things God has done.  I see His love for me everyday.  Even on days where we might not fully understand or have all the answers to the questions…God does.

For months I have been going to the doctors trying to figure out what was wrong with my lip.  After several doctors visits and tests they have found out what was wrong with it.  Last week I was diagnosed with an aggressive form of skin cancer.  It is not melanoma, and we praise God for that.  However, the nature of this aggressive cancer is going to require an aggressive treatment , removal and repair process.   The first week of August I am going in to have the cancer removed where I will have a good portion of my bottom lip and surrounding tissue removed.  This will be followed by an extensive plastic surgery that will repair the wound and allow the skin to heal.  The Doctors main goal is to remove cancer.  We are praying (and you can pray along with us) that the cancer has not spread any further than the lip.  We are praying that it actually shrinks before the procedure.  And we pray that the doctors would be able to confidently locate and remove all of the cancer and at the end of the procedure will be able to give us a report that the cancer was all removed.  Once they remove the tissue that has cancer they will test the tissue to see what type of further treatments might be necessary to ensure the body is rid of the cancer.

As a part of the recovery process I will not be able to speak for several weeks. ( I know… ironic).    I will not be able to communicate with you by my normal means.  The best ways for you to hear about the progress of the surgery and recovery process AND to encourage me is through my blog ( www.dougstoryblog.com ).  I will communicate regularly through this and you will be able to know what is happening and how you can be praying for us.

You can also find updates on our Facebook page.  Just search for SUNRISE CHURCH EAST VALLEY.

Our family and me included have been through a rollercoaster of emotions and experiences this last week.  We are still processing a lot of the things that are going on.  As a family we are discussing and planning how to prepare and how to allow for the best recovery.  Please respect our family at this time.  We are not perfect people, just people a perfect God is using right now to proclaim His goodness.  Please do not talk to Nicholas about what is going on.  We know that you want to let him know you are praying for his daddy, but we want to protect him from any undue pain and misunderstanding about what is going on.  We want Nicholas to have a normal 3 year old life.  He enjoys his friends his age and coming to church, and we don’t want him to need to grow up faster than he needs to by being involved in some adult conversations.  Pray for our family and for this situation to bring us closer to each other and closer to God.  We have always appreciated your love and support and will continue to rely on it from this day forward.

As for Sunrise Church East Valley Campus we will still have church services every Sunday morning.  Sunrise Church has been extremely supportive in this situation and we are working on getting several people to fill in for me.  This church was not built around me.  From the beginning we have learned and now know that the church is not a building.  It is the people who meet inside whatever building you meet in.  (School or church).  The church is also not a single person or personality.  It is a collection of people and personalities.  Community groups will still meet. Classes will continue.  Worship will happen.  Just the guy communicating a message will be different for the time being.  ( and in all honesty he will most likely have shorter messages than I did )  We are blessed to be a part of a church that has a lot of human resources, both on staff and volunteer, and those human resources are going have to step up right now.

Next week I will be here at church.  Pastor Jay will preaching for me and we will have a final plan of what is going to happen while I recover until I can ( and I will ) return.

This is not taking God by surprise.  He is not in heaven right now biting his fingernails hoping that Sunrise Church and Doug Story can handle this situation.  He HAS A PLAN.  The worst thing that can happen out of this for our church is that we cease to do what we have been doing all along.

That is Be ONE,      BRING ONE,     and      BUILD ONE.

We ask that you Pray Diligently for this process:

Pray for healing.

Pray that cancer shrinks between now and the procedures.

Pray that the doctors can remove ALL of the cancer.

Pray that the cancer has not spread to other parts of the body.

Pray for healing after the surgeries

Pray for strength for me and my family

God has chosen for our family and church to go through this at this time.  We know God does not give us anything that we cannot handle.  At this time God graciously chosen for all us to endure some changes.  He will provide.  He will succeed.  He will be faithful.  That is what He does.

Must Be Connected

John 15:5  I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

The other day I felt manly. There are certain times, certain moments, when it feels good to be a MAN.  If there is one place that helps achieve those moments, it is Home Depot.  I walk into that store and I just feel tougher.  I start looking down aisles and trying to imagine myself fixing something.  This particular trip to Home Depot was especially sweet because I was buying a new power tool (insert manly grunt here).  I go into the part of the store that has what I am looking for.  I start with the big expensive professional stuff and then work my way back into reality.  I find what will suit my needs, purchase it and go home.  I open the box and begin to put the drill together when I notice this giant tag hanging from the battery pack, it reads:

WARNING

“This tool will not work if the battery is not plugged in.  A charged battery must be connected properly to use this tool.”

Really?  That needs to be stated.  I just bought a cordless battery operated drill.  How stupid are people?  Then it hit me, sometimes people forget where the real power comes from.

Jesus reminds his disciples in John 15 that if they want to be fruitful in ministry they need to be connected to Him…always.  He is reminding them that He is the true vine and they are the branches.  If the branches try to make it on their own without the life giving power of the vine, they die.  It is impossible for branches to produce fruit, let alone live at all, if they are not connected to the vine.  He is getting them ready for their task to come and that was to go out into the world and change it forever with the good news of Jesus Christ.  The fruit they were called to produce is the same fruit we are called to produce today.  The fruit is seeing lives changed through the power and message of Jesus Christ.  Thus we, as branches, must be connected to Him in order to see that life change in our own life and in the lives of others.  Life change only happens when we are connected to Christ in every aspect of our life.  Every thought, every desire, every word, every action, every motive and every breath must be connected to Christ.  Maybe as followers of Christ we should come with this tag attached to us:

WARNING

“If you want your life to matter you must be plugged into Christ.  His power, His Spirit must be connected properly to you in order to be used for worldchange.”

Sometimes tags are obvious, but they always serve as a good reminder.

God, help me stay connected to you.  Continue to draw me closer to you each and every day.  Through your power and your strength help me to have fruit that will last for your Kingdom.  Make me a branch that produces change in the lives of others.

2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

It is funny to see how as we get older we try to have more independence. For example our oldest son is 3 years old and with the birth of his younger brother last week our oldest has become “completely independent.” Here is what he told me he could do on his own. Change his brothers diapers, give him a bath, drive to the store to get more diapers, teach his brother how to hit a baseball, make his own mac and cheese, get the mail, and mow the lawn and the list goes on and on. Every time something needs to be done he assures us he can do it all by himself. Wouldn’t it be nice? Now don’t get me wrong there are lots of things he does on his own. However, our newborn needs us for everything. The more I think of it, our newborn is helpless without us. As a new parent I absolutely love it. I love that he needs me. I love to care for him. I love to clean him up. I love to hold him, clothe him, and provide for him. I love to love him. I cherish these days.

As I look at the Church I see a disheartening trend emerging from the people. As we get older in our relationship with God we think we need Him less. We look at our lives that might not be spiraling out of control and we think to ourselves, “wow, I am doing a great job with my life.” We look around us and we assume that we are the authors of our own success. As we mature we begin to form a list of all the things we can do on our own. We think we can overcome that temptation alone. We assume we have the strength to persevere. We think that we need God less.

I am reminded of this in 2 Peter chapter 1 where it says that everything we need for life comes from the knowledge of God made possible though the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ. Every single thing we need to have life, to pursue Godly living comes from Him. We can do nothing on our own. When we think we can do things on our own strength we slowly begin to replace God with us. We begin to think we are stronger than we really are. We begin to think we are more loving than we really are. We begin to think we are more holy than we really are. There is only one God who orchestrated the redemption of man through His Son Jesus Christ. There is only one God who created the universe and put the stars in their place. There is only one God who can truly provide everything we need to live a life set apart for Him. And He loves every minute of it. God desires to be depended on. He does not want us to go through this life thinking we can do it all on our own. That is why he freely gives everything we need.

So next time you begin to think that you are bigger than you really are. Remember that when it comes to God we are but newborns, who depend on Him for EVERYTHING!

Lord, empty us of ourselves. Remove from us the thought they we can do anything on our own strength. Remind us that everything we need for life has come from you. Help us be filled with more of you and less of us

1 Peter 3:15 – But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord.  Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.  But do this with gentleness and respect

My 3 year old son loves baseball.  He also loves waking up really early so he can get started on his fun filled day.  The other morning my son makes his way into my room and he wakes me up with a quiet whisper, “DAD, can we go outside and play baseball.”  I look up at the clock and I simply reply, “NO, it is 5 o’clock in the morning.”  “But Dad, I have my glove, I’m ready.”  Minutes later I hear more commotion and a quiet whisper, “Dad, I went downstairs and got the bases.”  Before too long I have a complete set of bases, a bat, a glove, and about 5 baseballs all thrown on me and my bed and my son waiting in the dark for me to get up and play baseball with him.  He doesn’t give up, he doesn’t get mad, he keeps on waiting.  He keeps on asking, just waiting for his moment.  He is prepared and always ready for the moment I wake up and say “let’s play ball.”

The Bible instructs us to be ready for a lot of things that may come our way.  In the book of 1 Peter we are told to be ready to explain when we have hope.  More specifically the hope we find in Jesus Christ.  This hope is not something that people should have to look hard to find.  Actually, this hope should radiate from the life you live.  In fact not only should you be prepared to give an answer for the hope you have, but you should be eager to do so.  Sometimes we ar prepared for a task, but we pray we never have to actually do it.  Hot so here.  Our hope is powerful.  It is a big deal.  Our lives should reflect hope.  A hope we have in Jesus Christ.  Jesus Christ should be our anchor, our rock, and our foundation.  Everything we say, do, and think should be pointing people around us to Jesus.  In order for us to really be prepared to make a defense of the hope we have in Christ our hope must shine so others can see it.

Right now at Sunrise Church we are spending some time answering the questions that a lot of people have when it comes to God.  Our desire is to not only explain with a logical answer the questions, but also to help prepare you to speak up so you can explain the hope you have with gentleness and respect.

Remember you never know when you will have the chance to give an answer, but when it comes, you have to be prepared, you have to b eager, you have to be ready.  Even at 5 o’clock in the morning.

LORD shine through me.  Help others be drawn to your Son through us.  Help my life shine with hope.  A hope that is found in You alone.  Help me be ready to share that hope at all times.